spr | The House in Which Nightmares Dwell 8.5

Midori opened her eyes after being brought back from dozing off into sleep.

Her body was tired. She seriously wanted to sleep. Still, her sleep was superficial and she ended up being drowsy all night long. That went on lately. -- She would wake up this way very often.

'I won't fall asleep again', Midori thought and quietly let out a sigh.

Reiko slept beside Midori inside the Japanese-style room on the second floor. They handed Mai her own room, because Reiko was a concern.

Midori turned over in order to fall asleep again. Inside the darkness Reiko lied down with her eyes wide open and looked in her direction.

"... ... Can't sleep?"

The pitch of her voice was low, but that might be due to Midori being half-asleep. Reiko gave no response. She was simply looking at Midori with eyes that seemed like glass beads.

"If you don't sleep, won't your body break down?"

Just endure it a little more, Midori told herself. Tomorrow an expert on removing spiritual possession will arrive and may cure Reiko's condition. What's happening at this house will surely be taken care of by Mai and the others. Another part of the strange phenomena was the fault of the Sasakura family, so it would surely come to a halt.

"Mother, you have to sleep even if it's only closing your eyes--."

"Shh," Reiko whispered.

"Don't talk loudly."

She had a very quiet voice.

"Mother?"

"You'll be found by Kosori. -- Don't."

Midori blinked. She was about to get up, but she was stopped by Reiko. Under the futon, Reiko tightly gripped Midori's hand.

"Kosori is here. ... ... Looking in from outside the window. He's circling around the house."

-- This wasn't Reiko.

Midori went rigid. It wasn't Reiko's tone of voice at least.

"It's no good at all if you're found. Because scary things will happen."

After saying that, Reiko looked at Midori's face.

"... ... At least don't let yourself be found out, onee-chan."

Midori lightly licked her lips. It felt like her throat was obstructed by something.

"... ... What is Kosori?"

"Something scary."

"That is here? Around the house?"

"... ... It circles around and takes a look inside."

"Were you found?"

Remaining in that position, Reiko nodded. She rubbed her cheek against the pillow.

"... ... It hurt."

Reiko blinked. A dark light repelled and a tears fell.

"Don't get found. Run away, okay?"

Midori tried to nod somehow.

"... ...I understand."

Reiko continued shedding tears, so she nodded once again. As if content she closed her eyes. Midori watched over her face. The face of the mother she was familiar with had grown old within such a short time span.

-- It's not the usual person.

Even if she was truly possessed by something, it still wasn't the usual one. Her manner of speaking seemed very young. As if she were a child.

-- It hurt.

What she remembered was the hatchet. A hatched covered by blood. If someone swung that at her wouldn't that have hurt? Then she wondered if Kosori was that man. What if this child was slaughtered by means of that hatchet.

-- Don't come in.

-- Spare that child at least.

-- It hurt.

A mother who was attacked, the child who returned home and the hatchet that swung down at that child.

Lightly breathing out while feeling helpless, Midori fumbled inside the futon. She closed her eyes after finding a posture in which she could at least sleep more easily.

She sensed it right at that moment.

-- A gaze.

Midori's entire body stiffened.

Someone is watching. -- It's not Reiko. Reiko already slept soundly.

She recognized the prowling gaze in the window that was reflected in the dresser at her feet - it had been given by her father as a present to her mother soon after they married.

The window was near Midori's pillow. The inner part had a shōji screen, but the shōji screen was open, and furthermore, the window with an embedded mirror itself was slightly open.

-- This is impossible.

She didn't particularly confirm whether it was closed, but she would have realized if it were open. Not to mention that Reiko wouldn't have opened the shōji screen or the window, and Midori once again had no recollection of opening it either.

(... ...Why.)

There was only a gap of one centimeter in the opened window. Someone was peeking in from that place. -- She was confident someone was peeking in.

(There shouldn't be anyone staring in.)

Outside the window was only the backyard -- she thought it was a different backyard. There was no foothold for a person to peer inside.

(It's my imagination.)

Midori told herself. However, she couldn't sleep while ignoring that gaze.

(... ... Let's close it.)

It would give her peace of mind if she closed the window. Close the window tightly and close the shōji screen.

Midori hesitated inside the futon for a while, but gradually mustered the courage and moved her body.

-- Someone's hand stopped her.

A small hand was placed on Midori's shoulder from behind. Small -- Cold.

Midori moved only her head at once, looking over her shoulder. Her eyes captured the shape of a child sitting beside the futon.

Hii, a sound came from her throat.

"... ... Don't."

The child said. She could barely make out the sound, as if it were overshadowed by the atmosphere.

"Kosori is here... ..."

It was a child wearing a pyjama. It looked like a boy. His expression couldn't be seen. Right around his eyes a huge wound as straight as a line gaped. His face was covered by blood from there. It dripped along his plump cheeks to his chin, possibly streaming towards his throat.

"... ... You will be discovered."

What barely made a sound was the exhalation that emitted from the open deep wound at his throat. The child's head tilted because of the wound from the side of his neck toward his throat.

Midori screamed. -- Unaware of herself doing it.

Back to Chapter 8.4 | Forward to Chapter 8.6

Notes

Shōji (障子): A door, window or room divider made of translucent paper over a frame of wood. Here are some pictures to get an idea how it looks like in a window.

Onee-chan: older sister. It can also be used on older females not related by blood.